Arizona reports 4,417 new COVID-19 cases, 176 more deaths
Feb 4, 2021, 8:27 AM | Updated: 10:18 pm
Syringes with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are placed in a tray as vaccinations are administered at the Doolittle Senior Center on February 3, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
This is a regularly updated story with the latest information about the coronavirus and its impact in Arizona and beyond for Feb. 4, 2021.
PHOENIX – Arizona health officials on Thursday reported 4,417 new coronavirus cases, ending a three-day streak under 4,000, and 176 additional deaths from COVID-19.
The state’s documented totals moved to 771,796 infections and 13,752 fatalities, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ COVID-19 dashboard.
The virus remains widespread across the state, although the surge that made Arizona the nation’s hot spot last month is receding.
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In Wednesday’s update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Arizona remained at No. 3 in the nation in average cases per capita over the last seven days, behind Texas and South Carolina. Arizona held at fourth in deaths, behind Alabama, South Carolina and Iowa.
COVID-19 hospitalizations are now lower than they were at the July peak of the state’s first wave, but cases and deaths are still higher.
The number of Arizona’s confirmed or suspected COVID-19 inpatients fell to 3,303 on Wednesday, the fewest since Dec. 8. The number of ICU beds used by COVID-19 patients dipped to 946, the second-fewest since Dec. 21.
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Statewide, COVID-19 patients took up 38% of all inpatient beds and 53% of all ICU beds on Wednesday. Overall, inpatient beds were at 91% of capacity and ICU beds at 89%.
Arizona’s weekly percent positivity for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, an indicator of how much the virus is spreading in the community, has been receding but remains at a substantial level.
Of the 29,430 people tested so far this week, 14% received a positive result. The recorded positive rate for last week is 16% for 125,908 people tested, the lowest since before Thanksgiving and the fourth consecutive weekly decline.
Official positivity rates are based on when the samples are taken, not when they are reported, so the percentage for recent weeks can fluctuate as labs get caught up on testing and the results are documented by the state.
The seven-day average for the state health department’s newly reported coronavirus cases was at 4,116.86 for Wednesday, according to tracking by The Associated Press, the lowest mark since Nov. 30 but still higher than the July peak of the first wave.
The seven-day average of newly reported deaths ticked up for the third consecutive day to 133.29.
The state’s daily updates present case, death and testing data after the state receives statistics and confirms them, which can lag by several days or more. They don’t represent the actual activity over the past 24 hours.
The hospitalization data posted each morning is reported electronically the previous evening by 100 hospitals across the state, as required under executive order.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, has no impact on some people and is seriously debilitating or fatal for others. Infected people without symptoms — which include but are not limited to cough, fever and difficulty breathing — are capable of spreading the virus.
Diagnostic testing is available at hundreds of locations across Arizona and should be sought out by anybody with symptoms or who may have been exposed to an infected person. Information about locations, schedules and registration can be found on the Department of Health Services website.
The department also has a vaccine-finder page with a map of locations and information about registration.
Below are Thursday’s latest developments about the coronavirus pandemic from around the state, country and world:
- The Arizona Department of Health Services said more than 766,000 COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the state as of Thursday. More than 128,000 people have received both of their shots in Arizona.
- Johnson & Johnson asked U.S. regulators Thursday to clear the world’s first single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, an easier-to-use option that could boost supplies.
- The Navajo Nation reported 110 new cases and nine additional deaths, bringing the documented totals to 28,668 infections and 1,047 fatalities.
- The executive director for the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University doesn’t believe the coronavirus vaccine has impacted state’s COVID numbers yet.
- The annual July 4 Tempe Town Lake Festival will not be taking place this year due to uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Globally, there were about 104.5 million COVID-19 cases and 2.27 million deaths as of Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University research. The figures for the U.S. were around 26.56 million cases and 451,000 deaths.
